. . .
piper
Three days.That’s how long it’s been since I’ve talked to anyone in my family other than Peter. I never thought he’d be one to have my back the way he has the past few days. Him being in my corner is much appreciated, even if he didn’t vouch for me when I initially presented the marketing plan. There’s always room for growth.
There’s a knock at my door and I pause the music I have blasting through the living room while I stress clean.
I don’t bother looking as I open it. “Peter, I’m fine. I don’t need any more food.”
Except he’s not the person on my porch. It’s my sister. “Well, I guess you’re shit out of luck because I’m here with food.”
Opening the door wider, I motion her to come inside. “At this rate, I’m going to be waddling into work when I go back.”
It’s mostly the paperwork I’ll need to get done. Despite all the drama surrounding the social media blasts, I’m still doing them. They are what is driving business and there’s no reason it should stop. If anything, I’m doing it to rub it in Pierce’s face.
“You weren’t answering my texts, or calls. I needed to come by and do a proof of life check. And to make sure you weren’t lying on the couch drowning your sorrows in sangria.”
“Please, as if I would allow myself to do that.”
Paula lifts an eyebrow. “Yes, you would, you have a habit of being dramatic when it benefits you.”
She’s not wrong. It’s the only way I could get my way on some things when I was younger because nobody would listen to me. I did storm off during the cookout, so maybe she has a point.
“What did you bring to eat?” I try to pull the bag from her hands and she shoos me away.
I’m actually glad she’s here. She hasn’t always gotten along with Pierce so she won’t judge me too harshly on anything I want to vent about. But…she’s also the only sibling in a relationship and I need to pick her brain.
“Wings. Eric also said to stop moping and come see him at the bar.” She shakes her head in exasperation. The feeling is mutual. As one of the best bartenders Out of the Ashes has, he’s always in everyone’s business. It’s kind of annoying, actually.
“How does he know I’m moping?”
“I’m not sure. He mentioned something about Beau being sad last night, and assumed since you weren’t with him, you were, too.”
“That man is way too perceptive.” I sit on the couch and lower the music. “Have you talked to Beau?”
She nods before bringing the boxes with the food to the living room. I have a perfectly good kitchen table, but eating on the couch is much more comfortable.
“He’s definitely not happy right now. And, he’s pissed at himself for not saying anything sooner.”
I grab a wing and dip it into ranch. He’s not the only one who’s miserable. I haven’t slept well since the cookout. I keepreaching for my phone to reply to his texts, but decide not to every single time.
“We’ve never gone this long without talking. Even when we go on our business building trips, we keep in touch.”
“Y’all need to fix this. I don’t know how to handle the two of you.” I open my mouth, but she raises her hand to stop me. “I’m not saying you have to forgive him right this second. But give him a chance to tell his side of the story. You can’t rely on a snippet of conversation you overheard. You may not know all the details.”
Of course she’s defending Beau. But it makes me wonder what I don’t know. It’s bad enough he kept things a secret, but maybe it was for a good reason. He probably thought he was protecting me from something. It’s the same thing he used to do when we were in high school and he was worried I would hear whatever rumors the popular crowd was spreading.
“Do I need to keep that same energy for Pierce?”
“Hell no.” She laughs. “He shouldn’t have shot down your idea to begin with. All the work you and Beau have done has boosted the winery. He needs to listen to the younger siblings. You have a pulse on what people your age want.”
I never thought about it like that. There are tons of things people in town want to do, but they have to drive to the closest city to do it. Which is making my brain turn with more ideas. We can bring some of those things to our area. I need to write these things down before I forget them. Well, put them in my phone.
“What are you doing?” Paula asks as I look for my phone.
“You spurred some ideas.” I find it stuck between the couch cushions. My fingers fly across the screen as I think of events we could have at the winery. “And some of them may be great to have you on board.”
“No, no, no.” She waves her hands in front of her. “You’re not completely roping me back into the winery.”
